Marmaris

Aegean, Turkey 1 tours visit here

Marmaris is a major resort town and port on Turkey's southwest Aegean coast, in Muğla Province. It sits at the head of a deep, sheltered bay ringed by pine-clad mountains, a natural harbour that served fishing and trade long before tourism arrived. It is now one of the country's busiest holiday centres and the main gateway to the gulet routes threading the surrounding coves and islands. The compact old quarter climbs toward Marmaris Castle, a 16th-century fortress rebuilt under Suleiman the Magnificent and now housing a small museum with views over the harbour. Below it run the covered lanes of the old bazaar and a seafront promenade leading to the marina, where yachts and traditional wooden gulets moor side by side. Diving, day boat trips and Blue Cruise departures toward the Datça peninsula and the Fethiye coast begin here, and seasonal ferries cross to the Greek island of Rhodes. Marmaris is usually treated as a base rather than a single sight: a half-day covers the castle and bazaar, with the rest of the time spent on the water or at the neighbouring bays of İçmeler and Turunç. The season runs from late spring into autumn, when the sea is warm and boat traffic peaks.